Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1887-06-03
"REMINISCENCES
The spotted Horses-The Chinook
Wfmds-IdRhO.

the Pacific coast. The letter was
written to the Butte Mountain,
and was dated at Walla Walla:
This and surrounding region for
MANY hundrad mile is the native
land of the spotted horse. | have
seen in this valley as many as 5000
spotted horses in single band. In
one of our Indian wars the soldiers
were ordered to destroy the property
of the beaten and flying savages.
This property consisted mostly of
horses--those beautiful and sagacious
spotted horses that at that time filed
all these fertile valleys. The caval-
ry drove the many bands of spotted
horses all together against the steep
and stony banks OF the Columbia and
the soldiers were set to work to shoot
them down. 1t was tedious task,
for there were many thousands of
these poor horses. | record with
pleasure that the soldiers seemed to
do their work with reluctance. At
last the horses seemed to understand.
Here and there they stood out singly,
facing death, falling in their tracks
very quietly. But after the shooting
bad been going on some time they
suddenly seemed to grow desperate.
There was still more than Thousand
of them left. They raised their heads
in the air, circled round and round
and uttered such wild and unearthly
cries as no man will ever hear again.
All at once, and in body, they
wheeled and plunged headiong over
the perpendicular banks Of the Col
umbia river, and were lost to view in
the gathering night and foaming riv-
or that dashed against the crags be.
low. There was not one OF this splen-
did band of spotted horses left alive.
And why are the horses spotted here?
Look at the spotted mountains of
snow that encircle US here, and then
60 and read the story of Jacob and
his spotted sticks and the cattle
troughs in your family Bible. "
Some years ago when | wrote about
the chinook winds the small wits made
great sport. But since l wrote a
magazine sketch of these strange
winds scientists have had the matter
in hand, and they hold that the winds
blow in from the Japan seas, instead
of blowing up the Colorado from the
hot sands Of Arizona, as / once be-
lieved. But be that as it may, the
chinook wind is the one thing that
makes all this vast northwest habita-
BILE. The winds come suddenly; and
when they strike you you want to sit
right down and rest. 1t is like the
breath of spring. And they never
come except on the coolest day. They
strike the high headlands first. The
brown hills are swept of snow in a
single hour. Then there is rush to
get the cattle and horses to the hills.
This Indian name, like all others,
has its accent on the second syllable.
1t is pronounced I-dah-ho. Literal
ly it means "Where the light is" A
larger and more complete translation
would be, "Where the light first rests
on the mountain at sunrise" If you
care to look on the map you will find
the name of my town there. But it
is on the map only; for soon after |
had established my express office and
the boys had pitched their tents and
cabins around me-this was when
Idaho mines were first discovered
there came a man, one DR.. Ferbur,
along, who had daughter. Her name
was Florence. And as he could not
get lot for his drug store on terms
to suit, he went half mile further on
with his daughter and there sat down.
My town disappeared from history in
less than half year. The miners
gathered around the old man and his
daughter. They named their town
Florence, and it became the capital
of Idaho.
was here in Walla Walla when
Idaho was discovered engaged in
carrying letters on the backs of these
spotted horses to the miners in far
away camps. now threw all nv
energies into the new field, and was
employed by the miners to carry let
tiers In and gold dust out. 1t was
more than 200 miles from this point
to Millersburg by the mountain trails
which had to travail Swift v,o,,, :.